Jean Graham has been making art for years. She continues to make art when she is not teaching, designing, organizing exhibitions and managing public art projects. She received an MFA from the University of Michigan and a BA from New College in Sarasota, Florida.
In her own words: The first years of my work as an artist, I was devoted to an exploration of the ceramic pot – first drawn to the intimacy with daily life that functional forms provide. Then I explored the physical and metaphorical spaces of the vessel – the notion of containment & nourishment, the drama between “inside” & “outside” – always inspired by the objects of ritual and pageantry created by cultures where art remains connected with all the vital experiences of a person’s life. For me, the vessel always implied the participation of a group of people – the punch bowl at the heart of the party, the well on the farm, the pot buried with the remains of a loved one… For my first solo museum exhibition of vessels in 1979 I stated: “Artists can create forms that can unify and release the spirit of a community, indeed, create community.” Not so ironically, many years later in Austin I find myself doing community-based projects with tiles and mosaics which are a vehicle for celebrating art and bringing the community alive.
Contact Jean at 512.452.4621 • 1215 Karen Avenue • Austin, Texas 78757 • graham-j@swbell.net

Flying Together Detail

Jean installing bird wall

Serving Serpent with bowls

Mother Reliquary and Reliquary

Tripod Vessel